Monday, March 19, 2012

Today in the northern hemisphere is earth’s threshold from the long darkness of winter towards the bright light of summer. All over the planet there is a balance of light and dark, equal daylight and starlight. In the north the earth begins Her deep exhale, springing forth in vibrant blooms of the seeds planted in the waning light of autumn, held in the potential of the deep dark of winter.

First Principle of Anusara yoga, Open to Grace is the unequivocal affirmation of what is. It’s the affirmation that every moment, every thought, every feeling, person, experience, every thing is a unique vibration of one Supreme Consciousness.

The Divine pulsation of the Universe (Spanda) is the intrinsic throb at the Essence of everyone and everything, every cell in our bodies bursting with the pulsation of potential to be. In the relative embodied world, Spanda expresses through a constant contraction and expansion, the polarity of contrasting compliments, yes/no, here/there, now/then, up/down, winter/summer, good/bad, light/dark. Everything is a vibration of Consciousness, the one Light becomes the many, everything a unique wave with its very own unique amplitude and velocity. Think Pink Floyd, Dark Side of the Moon.

It is so easy to be open to all the pleasurable and desirable feelings of life… love, happiness, joy and peace. Everyone wants to feel these, actually everything we do is because on some level we think our actions will bring us into these states of experience. When you are experiencing energy in motion (e-motion) as these pleasant vibrations of Consciousness, of course it is easier to recognize (Cit) divine Nature within yourself, others and the world around you. Like the old saying goes, “It is easier to be enlightened in Tibet.”

What happens when you don’t welcome your own feelings of fear, anger or sadness? These flavors of emotion are also divine expressions, often considered dark and shadow emotions. When you refuse to own your internal shadow emotions they show up in the way the outer world reflects back to you. You can easily see the specks of dirt in the eyes of those around you without recognizing the plank in your own. If you are ‘triggered’ and don’t embrace internal anxiety, depression or outrage, you reflect your shadows into the world as control, judgment, competition, seeing difference and separateness, isolation, fear, depression, violence, rage, self-destructiveness, skepticism, addiction and the list goes on. No matter what your intention is, ultimately what are you projecting into the world? Are you acting in ways that uplift or creates pain?

Welcoming and hugging your shadow, without self-deprecation or judgment of what is, invites you to appreciate all the different ways that Consciousness takes form. It places you into your Heart, cultivates compassion, self-love and forgiveness for yourself. Then you can love, forgive and have compassion for others. You feel balanced and an inner equanimity where love can grow. When you can truly welcome and embrace your own inner enemies, you realize you are free to allow and accept other’s shadows without harsh condemnation.

What are you seeing in your outer world and communities? What are you seeing in others that you are not willing to see in yourself?Where are your shadows lurking in your life?

On this threshold day may we all realign to the inner point of balance, the place where we can stand in our open vulnerable Heart. Open to embrace our own joyful radiance and accept those painful aspects of ourselves we tend to push away. The equal affirmation of inner light and darkness is the opening from which your awakening springs forth, the revelatory power of Grace. When one awakens, we all awaken.

-->

“If you look for anything in this world, find things that draw you into the greater Love...” – Wah

Saturday, March 17, 2012

1, 2, or 3 weeks of reconnecting, realigning, reaffirming and revelation to co-create and envision your new reality with the Universe.

For time immemorial, yogis (some known as the Pine Forest sages), have taken sabbatical from their families, work and villages to go explore the innerspace of their own Heart, Mind and Body. Leaving their families and work for extended periods of time, they would gather and go deep into the jungle to practice yoga, fully stepping into the forest of feeling and thought of their own Heart, realigning with their Essence to make themselves an offering.

Practicing yoga, meditation and sharing stories in satsang with their teachers, the Pine jungle sages awaken with each other to the Ananda Tandeva, the Ecstatic Dance, their own life's Dance of Bliss. They make offering before going back into the currents of their householder life, forever shifted, yogis hidden in plain sight deeply connected to their Spirit with a deep awareness and understanding of their own Heart's Core that is always connected, never separate.

Our fast paced westernized urban culture often knocks our physical, emotional and spiritual bodies out of balance from the earth's natural rhythms. Being physically distanced from our householder lives, deep in Nature, fully engaged in learning and practicing how to align, we sync up our physical body to the natural cycles and Flow of the earth. The great benefit of doing all three immersions back to back, or one or two in the jungle is the opportunity created to truly immerse and invest in ourselves.

The rich stories of experience in a supportive space shared with other heart inspired Jungle sages is the catalyst for true change. The space created by not having the day to day callings of western life creates the outer space to explore and cultivate your inner space. The experience of being immersed in the jungle allows us to sync up and rebalance with the the circadian rhythms, the natural cycles of existence, day/night, sun/moon and the seasons.

The immersion in the jungle, whether back to back, a combination of two, or just one will be the invitational threshold for you to shift from the inside out, a leap of soul consciousness that will ripple through lifetimes.

About Benita (BJ)

Internationally renown Certified Anusara® Yoga Teacher, Mom of 3 young men, Grandma of 4.
Founder of Heart Core® Yoga, Handstands Anonymous™ and a co-founder of the Anusara® School of Hatha Yoga. Hypnobirthing® practitioner, Reiki Master, and practitioner of other healing, nature based modalities.
Student of all things Grace, Love and Life.